Hello please tell me where to go.

[TravlinMan]

I think the iPad app with this forum is weird. On my Android phone it works very well but my iPad acts strange.

Anyhow, I had a nice day exploring Shawnee, it sure is beautiful. I went to Equality to send a postcard and buy some postcards, too.



Then I went to a place called Glen O Jones lake which was very nice and would be another place that folks can camp and see the eclipse.

Attachment 292612
Attachment 292613

After that I went over to Garden of the Gods, which is just a beautiful place with amazing views and rock formations.

Attachment 292614
Attachment 292615

There's lots s more to explore here so I will post more tomorrow. Right now I am enjoying this fine campsite.
Attachment 292616

Enjoy your night!

[Lily&Me]

Don't know where you are headed after the eclipse, but the Lincoln museum and historical area in Springfield are very good....tho I realize as you hail from Virginia that the North's take on the Civil War is different than the South's.

Still, interesting and well done, and there is tangible, physical history from Lincolns life and times...

If you are heading north....consider picking up the Great River road and taking it into Wisconsin.

Beautiful, un-levee'd views of The River, lots of small river towns and Galena, 75% of which is on the National Register of Historic Places.

This is most spectacular in the fall, but impressive any time, in my opinion.

There are some nice COE campgrounds along the way, too.

Travel safe.

Maggie

[OTRA15]

Thanks for the great photos. That place sure looks peaceful! Hope you are finding some good music, and maybe a little gospel this morning. Have you wandered south to Cave In Rock on the Ohio River? [Edit -- or east to Old Shawneetown?]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cave-In-Rock,_Illinois

Interesting that there is still a ferry across the river there apparently.

We were talking last night about the eclipse, and whether we would look at the sun using the special glasses . . . seems like lithium batteries inside the Airstream IMO -- very low probability risk -- very high cost . . .

Good suggestions from Maggie about possible stops down the road. Do you have a sense of which way the wind is going to blow next week?

Have fun tomorrow! As I said a few weeks ago, experiencing totality in a native forest would certainly be amazing. Cave In Rock apparently was a special place for the indigenous folks there many eclipses ago . . . imagine their wonder when darkness descended . . .



Cheers,

Peter

PS -- Didn't Lewis and Clark come down the Ohio from Pittsburgh on their way to The Miss, going right by Old Shawneetown and Cave In Rock?

http://www.dailyyonder.com/lewis-and...11/01/27/3136/

[TravlinMan]

Originally Posted by Lily&Me

Don't know where you are headed after the eclipse, but the Lincoln museum and historical area in Springfield are very good....tho I realize as you hail from Virginia that the North's take on the Civil War is different than the South's.

Still, interesting and well done, and there is tangible, physical history from Lincolns life and times...

If you are heading north....consider picking up the Great River road and taking it into Wisconsin.

Beautiful, un-levee'd views of The River, lots of small river towns and Galena, 75% of which is on the National Register of Historic Places.

This is most spectacular in the fall, but impressive any time, in my opinion.

There are some nice COE campgrounds along the way, too.

Travel safe.

Maggie

Why thank you, Maggie, I very much appreciate the advice. Especially about River road in Wisconsin. I am on my way back to Virginia and then turning right back around for Ohio and then California. I love all history. I got family on both sides of that war--, my wife is actually a descendent of Ulysses S Grant and I have been to family reunions for both General Grant's family and General Lee's family, so I have heard every take ya can imagine and I enjoy em all!

I will keep these places in mind. Thank you.

[TravlinMan]

Originally Posted by OTRA15

Thanks for the great photos. That place sure looks peaceful! Hope you are finding some good music, and maybe a little gospel this morning. Have you wandered south to Cave In Rock on the Ohio River? [Edit -- or east to Old Shawneetown?]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cave-In-Rock,_Illinois

Interesting that there is still a ferry across the river there apparently.

We were talking last night about the eclipse, and whether we would look at the sun using the special glasses . . . seems like lithium batteries inside the Airstream IMO -- very low probability risk -- very high cost . . .

Good suggestions from Maggie about possible stops down the road. Do you have a sense of which way the wind is going to blow next week?

Have fun tomorrow! As I said a few weeks ago, experiencing totality in a native forest would certainly be amazing. Cave In Rock apparently was a special place for the indigenous folks there many eclipses ago . . . imagine their wonder when darkness descended . . .



Cheers,

Peter

PS -- Didn't Lewis and Clark come down the Ohio from Pittsburgh on their way to The Miss, going right by Old Shawneetown and Cave In Rock?

http://www.dailyyonder.com/lewis-and...11/01/27/3136/

Peter, you once again think just like me, ha!

I did indeed go to cave in rock. It was a very interesting and fun place to explore. They have excellent views if the river and this would also be a great place to watch the eclipse. A lot of choices here!


So then I went to the cave which was very large and dark inside. It is right on the river. There are a lotta legends about this cave.



So then I looked at Cave in Lake 'Main St.' which is mainly just a restaurant but some really nice old buildings that look like they may reopen soon, as there was some construction happenin.



So Peter ain't the only one who noticed that ferry, ha! It was free and I certainly wasn't gonna turn down a free trip across the Ohio River, so I hopped in and floated over to Kentucky Amish country, where I had some fried catfish at the Front Porch restaurant.






This part of Kentucky is real beautiful and instead of backtrackin, I looped around over the Garfield Street bridge.


And, yup, I ended up in Old Shawneetown! It is the oldest town in Illinois and another very interesting place....


See my next post for pics of Old Shawneetown.

[TravlinMan]

Old Shawneetown is very interesting and very deserted! There is an operating saloon and museum there but most of it is long gone.... but it is a real great place to explore.







I highly recommend this area and spendin a few days explorin Shawnee Forest and the surrounding towns cause it is a beautiful and fascinating place.

[OTRA15]

Nice . . . amazing to picture the Ohio River as the main east-west "super highway" in that area way back when . . . no surprise that Old Shawneetown is the oldest town in Illinois, right?

Imagine the indigenous folks watching from the forests as more and more boats came floating downstream from the east.

Safe viewing . . .

[GettinAway]

Looking good TravlinMan. Having fun following along.

[OTRA15]

Thanks for your report in the other thread. Sounds like an amazing experience to have seen the eclipse's reflection in the lake's dark water, during the brief "nighttime" at the moment of totality!

Which way is the wind blowing -- toward Kentucky and Daniel Boone NF maybe?

Safe travels, and thanks for taking us along . . .

Cheers,

Peter

[TravlinMan]

Peter, the eclipse was a moment I will never forget.

Originally Posted by TravlinMan

Folks I didn't know what to expect but I was floored. I was standin in a lake in the middle of Shawnee Forest all by myself but I could hear cheers and music in the distance and I really don't know what to say, it was much more powerful than I thought it would be. I was shakin when total darkness came. There were clouds in the sky but it opened right up over the lake during totality. There was thunder in the distance. Birds sang. The lake turned black under my feet and the reflection of the sun's corona rippled in the black water. It was really something!

I hiked from my campsite to the western shore of Pounds lake and found a little cove away from the crowds where I could experience it all on my own and it was just magical. The sun was right over the lake but very high in the air and the reflections were somethin. I was very emotional, it was a very humbling and powerful event.

I put my phone away cause I wanted to experience it fully but I did have a camera on a tripod that took a few pics and if I can figure out how to share those, I will.

Yep... on to Daniel Boone! I'll probably make a stop or two along the way in Kentucky.... Gosh, I sure am gettin close to beautiful Virginia!

Originally Posted by TravlinMan

https://youtu.be/AgOSMmimJ1U

[TravlinMan]

Attachment 293045

[Lily&Me]

That is a breathtaking picture...

Maggie

[Mollysdad]

Originally Posted by TravlinMan

Gosh, I sure am gettin close to beautiful Virginia!

Time for a road trip!

That's a stunningly beautiful picture.

If you get home soon, I know I'll miss your posts.
[Background music of Sinatra's "My Way" swells]

For a guy who shuns crowds, you have almost 20,000 views.

[OTRA15]

Wow!

Not sure if you saw [while in CA] the post suggesting you submit a photo or two to this month's photo contest with the theme of boondocking. [Post #348 here has another great photo from that site west of Durango during the wildfire]

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f415...ng-170712.html

Your recent photo would be strong competition IMO!

Peter

[TravlinMan]

Ha thank you folks. I have had such a nice time communicating with y'all throughout this journey. And it ain't over yet!

Peter, I would like to post some pictures for the contest but sometimes I have a hard time finding away to repost the photos, I am gonna try it. But I think it's gotta have my airstream in it right?

Thank you, again, for the kind words. And now..... Kentucky!

I woke up early today and I headed towards Daniel Boone national Forest and while I was driving a very interesting sign caught my eye and I realized I was near the blue moon highway, which leads to the home place of the father of bluegrass himself, Mr. Bill Monroe. So, of course, I went there.



And they got a shed there where some great bluegrass is played on Friday nights when it gets cooler, I asked the lady at the blue moon general store across the street about it and she said it is great fun and that there is a park called Ohio county park nearby that allows RV campin.



So this woman also said there are many good bluegrass and country shows at the plaza theater in Glascow, so I drove a long ways along Kentucky's scenic byway to take a look, which was just beautiful.

The plaza theater is very nice. It ain't got any shows til the weekend when Ms. Lee Ann Womack will play but I will be in the forest by then! David Grisman and Del McCoury will play in October and maybe the timing will work for me then.....



But Glascow is a very nice lil town, they got a very good coffee roaster in an art gallery that's in an old bank building and I got a bag of fresh beans from them and an espresso.




So then I decided I'd just stay around this area cause I wanted to walk around and see their square, which has a very nice court house and some civil war monuments.




And since I was taking my time, I went over to see Fort Williams, which also has a cemetery.


So, I looked to see if there was any public land around here, and there was a COE campground about 20 miles south, towards Daniel Boone Forest, so I headed there.

On the way I stopped for fried chicken.




The campground is on Barren River lake and it is beautiful..... See the next post, folks.

[TravlinMan]

So this campground is called Bailey Point COE camp and they got some real nice sites that are spread out along the lake....




And while I was exploring this lake I also found a pretty interesting little cemetery tucked away in a picnic area down a farm road....



And the sunset out my window was mighty fine.


So tomorrow I head to Daniel Boone. Enjoy your evening, folks!

[OTRA15]

A cool fortuity with the Mr. Bill Monroe connection, and another fine COE CG found by chance. Hope you find some good music in Daniel Boone territory. Yes, for the photo contest the AS is probably supposed to be in the shot, but not sure how strictly this is followed. i would submit a few, as your style of boondocking and camera skills sure have opened these eyes to a wider range of possibilities. Thanks for this.

Will post a couple of tunes on the OTRA I and II threads for the trip home.

Safe travlin' . . .

Cheers,

Peter

[Gneiss Guy]

Alan, that eclipse photo is breath-taking! That alone makes it worth following your meanders and reading all your nonsense. JUST KIDDING! I look forward to your posts and missed them when you were in CA.

Richard

[TravlinMan]

Ha, thank you Richard, that's very kind. And, btw, mollysdad don't worry I'll be headed back out again before ya know it! Ha!

But as usual.... I once again have not made it very far.

There's just a whole lot to see around these parts and I never really explored Kentucky the way I guess I shoulda before. But after enjoying Glasgow the way I did, I decided to look and see what else was around before I headed to the forest. I had a lazy morning and left Barren River Lake around noon. I went north and ended up driving down some beautiful farm roads and onto 31e where I started seein signs for the birthplace of Abraham Lincoln, so I went there.



They got a giant monument to Lincoln here, and inside that monument is the actual cabin they lived in.




Also it was at this point that I seemed to have crossed over into the east coast time zone.

So I kept following the Lincoln trail past his boyhood home and his first school and ended up in Hodgenville which was a tiny lil town with a circle with some statues of Lincoln and a museum and a fudge shop. But the best thing is they have got a delicious lil burger place with hamburgers for $1.75 made by the sweetest old lady who will put onions in your patty if ya want. She's been doin that since the 30's.




So looking at the map I can tell that there's only a little left to go on 31e and it ends in a town called Bardstown and at that point I can go on 150 east back towards Daniel Boone.

Well I have really done myself in now because Bardstown is a very nice place with a lotta things to see and do and I can't just drive on past it so I stopped at their state park, 'My Old Kentucky Home State Park', and I'm gonna explore this town. It ain't a spectacular site, my neighbor is pretty close and ya can see that the power is on the wrong side but it sure is close to the center of town and it's only $20 which ain't bad for a state park.




More to come.... We will see if I get any further tomorrow..... Ha!

[PKI]

TM - thanks for the Bardstown and OKH info. It's on our list as a stop over. We'll see if we get that far East. Appreciate the pictures. Pat